Yovani Gallardo brings out the best in the Texas Rangers’ hitters. Good thing
for him he is on their side.

Gallardo has enjoyed unusually strong run support since returning to the
majors after a two-month stint with Triple-A Round Rock. The Rangers averaged 11
runs per game in his three June starts Josey
Jewell Color Rush Jersey , including an 11-3 thumping of the
Chicago White Sox on Friday when they blasted five home runs.

Gallardo hopes he will continue to be a good luck charm when he starts the
opener of a four-game series against the Tigers in Detroit on Thursday
night.

“This is what they do,” Gallardo told MLB.com and other reporters afterward.
“This is the kind of offense we have here. It definitely makes it easier, but
yet it is one of those things where you can’t allow it to get out of hand as
well. You’ve just got to keep it tight in the strike zone and get some quick
outs.”

Gallardo (2-0, 9.00 ERA) didn’t require an offensive explosion from his team
against the White Sox, as he delivered his best outing of the season. He tossed
7 1/3 innings on just 90 pitches, giving up three runs on four hits and striking
out seven.

“He was in control the whole time,” Rangers catcher Robinson Chirinos told
MLB.com. “I think he built from that last outing (5 1/3 innings) in Minnesota.
It was the same thing; he’s throwing really well.”

He’ll be opposed by left-hander Matthew Boyd (4-6, 4.18), one of several
Detroit pitchers who could be dealt this season.

Boyd has gone winless in his last four starts, though his last start was a
quality outing at Toronto. He gave up three runs on four hits over six innings
and posted seven strikeouts, his highest total since May 17.

The Rangers have given Boyd fits in the past. He is 1-4 with a 5.53 ERA in
five career starts against them. Chirinos has homered twice against Boyd in
seven career at-bats.

Detroit will try to bounce back from two road losses to the streaking Chicago
Cubs, who have won six straight. The Tigers lost 5-2 on Wednesday, and manager
Ron Gardenhire had to depart to the clubhouse early due to heat exhaustion. He
is expected to be back in the Tigers dugout on Thursday.

“It’s frustrating to be right there, to be so close,” catcher James McCann
told MLB.com. “But at the end of the day Rich
Hill Los Angeles Dodgers Jersey , that’s not reflected in your
win-loss column. It’s either a win or a loss. We came up short two games in a
row.”

The Tigers have lost 13 of their last 15 games, but they do have a hot hitter
in Nicholas Castellanos, who has hit safely in 10 of the last 11 games.
Castellanos smacked a solo homer and walked twice on Wednesday.

Texas’ Shin-Soo Choo has been swinging an even hotter bat. Choo has reached
base in 44 consecutive games after getting two hits, including a homer, on
Wednesday. The Rangers will have a quick turnaround after losing at home in
extra innings to Houston 5-4 in that game.

Giannis Antetokounmpo asserted
himself in the biggest game of his budding career with his team on the brink of
playoff elimination.

Now it’s on to Game 7 for the Milwaukee Bucks.

Antetokounmpo had 31 points and 14 rebounds and the Bucks pulled away late to
beat the Boston Celtics 97-86 on Thursday night to force a winner-take-all game
Saturday night in Boston.

”At the end, it was (all) about will,” Antetokounmpo said. ”I was out there,
I was trying to make plays, I was trying to be aggressive.”

He had plenty of company to help keep the Celtics on their heels down the
stretch.

Just getting to Game 7 is a small but significant step for a young team that
lost in six games to the Toronto Raptors a year ago. The up-and-coming Bucks
haven’t played a seventh game in the playoffs since losing to Atlanta in the
first round in 2010.

”This is what you work for. Embrace that moment. Go out as a team, attack it
together … find a way to get a win,” coach Joe Prunty said.

The Celtics had their shots to win in it six. They led by nine early, then
drew as close as 80-78 with 7:13 left on Marcus Morris’ 3-pointer.

The Bucks made the last big push to close out the Celtics.

Boston had to settle for perimeter looks down the stretch. They couldn’t hit
enough 3s, finishing 10 of 36 (28 percent) on the night, and the Bucks limited
Boston on the glass.

”We got stagnant and we weren’t very good,” coach Brad Stevens said

At the other end, Antetokounmpo led the Bucks’ charge right at the heart of
the Celtics’ defense.

After Eric Bledsoe picked off Jayson Tatum’s inbounds pass, Antetokounmpo
converted an offensive rebound with a putback off the glass for an 89-81 lead
with 3:08 left. It was part of an 11-3 run late to help the Bucks pull away for
10-point advantage.

With his team facing elimination Brian
Allen Color Rush Jersey , Antetokounmpo vowed to be more aggressive
following a five-point loss in Game 5.

The two-time All-Star produced in the crunch time, scoring 20 points in the
second half on 8-of-14 shooting.

”It’s big. We’ve grown as a team,” Antetokounmpo said. ”For us to win Game 6
– we have a big opportunity ahead of us.”

Tatum finished with 22 points, and Terry Rozier had 18 for the Celtics. After
holding the edge on the glass for most of the series, Boston got outrebounded
48-39.

”Clearly their speed and length and athleticism affected us,” Stevens said.
”They were quicker to the ball all night than us, best probably exemplified by
the rebounding numbers.”

TIP INS

Celtics: Stevens stuck with the same starting five he used for Game 5, with
Semi Ojeleye in for Aron Baynes for a quicker frontcourt on defense. … Former
President Bill Clinton attended the game and exchanged handshakes with guard
Marcus Smart. … Jaylen Brown added 14 points on 6-of-15 shooting.

Bucks: C John Henson (back) missed his fourth straight game, with Thon Maker
getting his first start of the series over Tyler Zeller. Maker finished with
four points and one block. … Held a 25-4 edge on transition points. … Jabari
Parker had another strong game off the bench with nine points and 11
rebounds John
Kelly Color Rush Jersey , while Tony Snell had six points.

YOUNG CELTICS

Veteran forward Al Horford chalks up Game 6 as another valuable learning
experience for his young teammates.

No better education than a seventh game in the playoffs on home court.

”It’s going to be new for our group. This whole playoff experience has been
new, we have a lot of new pieces,” Horford said. ”As a basketball player, fan,
one of the places that you want to enjoy and be is the TD Garden for a Game
7.”

He finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

QUOTABLE

”We got great looks this whole series. It’s a matter of knocking it down and
trusting the pass. … We need to have that same mentality going into Game 7.” –
Middleton.